SUNDERLAND v ARSENAL
Football : England : Premier League
Saturday, February 11th, 2012, 3:00PM GMT

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PREVIEW

Sunderland continued it's great form in midweek, beating Middlesborough to set up a home tie against Arsenal in the FA Cup.

The win did not come as easily for Sunderland as I had thought it would, with Middlesborough battling back and taking the Cats to extra-time, where they finally got the job done with a late goal. I'm hoping that has taken something out of Martin O'Neill's side.

Arsenal have had a torrid start to the new year, winning only against Leeds and Aston Villa, both in the FA Cup and not at all easily.

Defeats in games they had no business even drawing meant the battle for 4th was being lost, before the Gunners turned it on at the Emirates last weekend and did Blackburn 7-1.

It was a magnificent performance, with the entire team working hard and the goals coming from 4 different men. Henry scored his 2nd goal during this loan spell, after Arteta had grabbed one in between a masterclass by Persie and the Ox, who got a hat-trick and brace respectively.

I feel this will have breathed new life into the team and will have a positive effect on their attitude coming into this.

Wenger's men may be the visiting team here but they are rested since early Saturday, having kicked off at 1pm. There is no chance of taking this game for granted, considering the league position as things stand, and they absolutely must get maximum points here to take advantage of the points Liverpool and Chelsea could well drop when they play.

There are no new injury worries here for Arsenal, who now have Chamakh back in the squad, although Gervinho is still in Africa, preparing to try and help his country win the tournament after scoring the goal that sent them to the final match.

With Van Persie, the Ox, Walcott and Henry playing the way they did, he will not be missed. Sagna made a return in that game against Blackburn and that is encouraging as the defence was nearly faultless, conceding only to a wonderstrike that any other keeper would have struggled against too.

BETTING VERDICT

This could end in a draw, however the situation is such Arsenal could well ride the momentum and nick it.

Bets on Arsenal to win by exactly 1 goal would not be bad, but if they get into their groove they could well put another spanking down, as unlikely as it does seem given Sunderlands amazing current form.

The price on Arsenal is big, so I'm going to simply take my Gunners to win.

The Statistics :

The Pick :

Arsenal to win

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

Take Arsenal to win @ 2.15 (PaddyPower)

Also consider:
Arsenal to win by 1 goal @ 4.00 (Bet365)